FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 29, 2006

COMING SATURDAY

Animation news -- and much more!!!

ROBERT DOWNEY JR. CAST AS IRON MAN

Robert Downey Jr. has been cast as Tony Stark and Iron Man in Marvel Studios' Iron Man movie.

"Robert Downey Jr. is one of the most talented and acclaimed actors of this generation," said Kevin Feige, president of production at Marvel Studios. "His versatility sets him apart and makes him an ideal fit to play such a complex character as Iron Man.

"We could not think of another actor better suited to bring one of Marvel's crown jewels to the big screen and be the centerpiece of our first independently produced feature."

Downey, 41, has dozens of film and television credits, including an Academy Award nomination for 1992's Chaplin. Emerging from the 1980's "Brat Pack," he was a cast member of Saturday Night Live for one season, as well as Ally McBeal.

Recent film credits include Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang, Good Night, and Good Luck, The Shaggy Dog, A Scanner Darkly and Gothika, as well as the upcoming Zodiac and Fur.

Like Tony Stark, Downey has fought substance abuse and was jailed for 180 days in December 1997. Stark's struggles with alcoholism will not be portrayed in the first Iron Man film.

Iron Man will be Downey's first lead action role. In an earlier interview director Jon Favreau told The Continuum that getting the best actor was more important than just the latest action-hero star.

"The nice part is that you don't have to go to the same list of usual suspects for casting that you would had this been a studio movie," he said. "Because this is Marvel, they trust the box-office draw of the hero itself and we don't need a name to define the hero. We need a name that's going to service the hero."

Here's how Marvel describes the film:

"Iron Man tells the story of Tony Stark, a billionaire industrialist and genius inventor who is kidnapped and forced to build a devastating weapon. Instead, using his intelligence and ingenuity, Tony builds a high-tech suit of armor and escapes captivity. Upon his return to America, Tony must come to terms with his past. When he uncovers a nefarious plot with global implications, he dons his powerful armor and vows to protect the world as Iron Man."

Filming of Iron Man will take place in Los Angeles and will probably begin in February or March. Iron Man is scheduled for a May 8, 2008 release.

For an interview with Favreau, CLICK HERE.

FANTASTIC FOUR: RISE OF THE SILVER SURFER'S DOUG JONES

Rumored for months, to the point of where an announcement would be anti-climatic, Doug Jones will be playing the Silver Surfer in Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer, currently in production in Vancouver.

Jones, who will likely be reprising his role of Abe Sapien in Hellboy 2: The Golden Army, finally broke his studio-induced silence on the role on Friday in a short question-and-answer with The Continuum.

SMALLVILLE'S "ARROW"

The CW has released a description for "Arrow," the Thursday, Oct. 19 episode of Smallville.

Here's how the network describes the episode:

"While attending a fundraiser, Lois (Erica Durance) witnesses the Green Arrow (Justin Hartley) steal a rare diamond necklace off Martha's (Annette O'Toole) neck and vows to find the man behind the costume. Clark (Tom Welling) does some investigating of his own and discovers Oliver Queen is the Green Arrow and has been stealing from the rich and giving to the poor. Meanwhile, Lex (Michael Rosenbaum) enlists Lionel's (John Glover) help in testing Lana's (Kristin Kreuk) loyalty."

The episode was written by Brian Peterson and Kelly Souders and was directed by Michael Rohl.

In other Smallville news, The CW described the ratings for the season-premiere episode, "Zod," as "solid." The opener pulled in 5.0 million viewers, according to the network.

For more images from the "Arrow" episode of Smallville, CLICK HERE.

HELLBOY: SWORD OF STORMS ON CARTOON NETWORK

Cartoon Network has released a description of Hellboy: Sword of Storms, an animated movie that will debut on the network on Saturday, Oct. 28 at 9:30 p.m. (ET/PT).

Here's how the network describes the film:

"When a university professor opens a forbidden scroll, he is possessed by the twin demons of thunder and lightning who seek to return to our world to wake their brothers, the dragons.

"Hellboy, along with two researchers and an albino psychic, travels to Japan to investigate. There he finds the sword of storms, the only weapon that can defeat the demons, and is transported to a world where he encounters several creatures of Japanese folklore."

Cartoon Network also announced it would air Ultimate Avengers 2 on Saturday, Oct. 21 at 9:30 p.m. (ET/PT).

For previous coverage of the Hellboy animated films, CLICK HERE.

AVATAR PRESS FOR DECEMBER

Avatar Press has provided The Continuum its solicitations for December.

NEW FANTASTIC FOUR EPISODE

A new episode of Fantastic Four, "My Neighbor Was a Skrull," will debut on Cartoon Network on Saturday at 8 p.m. (ET).

Here's how the episode is described:

"The FF return home from an extra-dimensional adventure to find the Baxter Building, and everyone in it, just a little bit off. Their usually-angry neighbors are suddenly all too happy to chat. They come bearing odd gifts, and oddly enough, seem extremely interested in the FF's powers. Soon it become obvious that the Baxter Building has been invaded by shape-shifting aliens - The Skrulls! But as the FF discover, whenever you deal with Skrulls, there's always more going on than meets the eye!"

Look for more Cartoon Network news on Saturday here in The Continuum.

FIRST LOOKS

For covers and four-page previews of titles arriving in stores on Oct. 25, CLICK HERE.